1. Technical Field
The present invention relates generally to a vehicular entertainment sound system (VESS), and more specifically, to a method for selectively recording and playing back a plurality of audio sources in a VESS.
2. Background Art
The automotive vehicle has become a venue where many individuals listen to news, traffic, and entertainment programs. By its very nature, the ability to listen to a desired program in a vehicle is significantly limited. For example, the length of time an individual spends in a vehicle rarely coincides with the duration of the program listened to by that person. Further, many times the desired program may not even be broadcasted during the time period an individual is in the vehicle. As a result, the individual is frequently prevented from listening to a desired program in its entirety.
There are many situations in which an occupant cannot listen to an entire audio program. A driver may be required to lower the volume of the VESS for short periods of time to allow him to focus on his driving. Typical situations demanding such action include occasions when unfavorable road conditions exist or when the driver must concentrate on the directions in which he should be driving. Other circumstances requiring the volume to be significantly lowered are when an occupant of the vehicle wishes to engage in a conversation with another person. For whatever reason the volume must be lowered, the individual is prevented from listening to a complete audio program in the vehicle. Such an adverse result is undesirable.
Currently, there exists a radio tape recorder for use in association with a VESS. This device allows a user to record radio broadcasts received by the VESS onto an audiocassette tape. Unfortunately, the recorder fails to provide the listener with a time-delayed version of the program being recorded while such program is being concurrently broadcasted. Accordingly, an individual who misses a portion of a program presently being recorded cannot listen to such portion and the remainder of the broadcast until the entire program has been recorded onto the audiocassette tape. Further, in comparison to RAM or hard disk drive as a medium, audiocassette tapes provide inferior sound quality and are subject to a shorter life span. The radio tape recorder also fails to independently provide users with audio programs that may appeal to the user. This device only records audio programs at the very moment the user activates it.
An automobile radio recording system has been introduced that permits a user to continuously record the contents of a radio program onto electronic media and then transfer such contents onto an audiocassette tape or compact disk. Unfortunately, similar to the previous device the automobile recorder fails to provide the listener with a time-delayed version of the program being recorded as long as such program is being simultaneously broadcasted. It also fails to independently provide the user with desired audio programs without the user""s immediate activation of the device.
A programmable radio has been introduced that allows for the selective recording of desired broadcasts. The device has voice recognition software that initiates recording of the broadcast when certain words or phrases are identified by the software. However, similar to the previous devices, the programmable radio is not an ondemand system that allows the user to delay a broadcast for an arbitrary period of time.
A recovery recorder system for audio and video programs continuously records a brief span of a broadcast onto a short-term memory medium. If in viewing or listening to the program the user decides that he would like a copy of the program, a control logic command is executed that causes the material on the short-term storage medium to be transferred to a long-term storage medium. Consequently, a user has a copy of the entire broadcast even though he actuates the system after a portion of the program has already been broadcasted. Unfortunately, this system fails to allow the user to effectively pause the live radio broadcast and then immediately resume playing such broadcast from the same point as long as the program is being simultaneously broadcasted. This device also fails to independently record audio programs appealing to the user without the user""s specific identification of such programs.
Digital recorders for television allow users to pause a television program being broadcasted and to subsequently resume playing the program from the same point. Unfortunately, this device does not provide any benefit to occupants of automobiles who wish to time-delay a broadcasted radio program. Also, the digital recorder has no feature to record an audio-only program.
In the context of the Internet and personal computers, technology exists for time-delay of radio broadcasts. However, this technology does not apply to FM, AM, or satellite broadcasts. Therefore, this technology falls short of helping an individual who wishes to listen to particular programs on his VESS.
There is a need to provide vehicular occupants with audio programs suited to their taste and at times when they demand such programs. Therefore, there is a need for a method of selectively recording a plurality of audio sources for a VESS.
The present invention provides a system that effectively pauses a live radio broadcast for a selected time period in a VESS. The invention also allows selective recording of audio signals congruent to previous audio signals listened to by the user. Further, the invention allows selective recording of audio signals identified by the user.
In carrying out the present invention, a method and system are provided for recording a plurality of audio signals in a VESS. The method and system provide the user with a selective plurality of desired audio signals upon his demand.
There is disclosed herein a method of recording a plurality of audio signals associated with a VESS. The method includes an audio input associated with an automotive vehicle. The plurality of audio signals is transmitted through the audio input to a controller within the automotive vehicle. A preferred plurality of audio signals is acoustically played on the VESS. A recorder is then actuated to record the preferred plurality of audio signals onto an electronic medium within the vehicle. The preferred plurality of audio signals is recorded for a recording time period onto the electronic medium within the vehicle. The controller suspends acoustical play of the preferred plurality of audio signals received from the audio input. This suspension begins at a halting point, at which time the recorder also begins to record the audio signals. Finally, the acoustical play is resumed from the halting point concurrently as the plurality of audio signals is being recorded. The acoustical play is resumed from the electronic medium within the vehicle.
In a further aspect of this invention, a control system associated with an automotive vehicle includes a controller that receives audio signals and data corresponding to the audio programs so as to compile a user profile. The controller then employs the user profile as a point of comparison for subsequently received audio programs and their accompanying data. If the data of the subsequently received audio program is congruent with the user profile, the controller actuates a recorder to record the audio program for the user.
In yet another aspect of the present invention, the control system associated with the automotive vehicle includes a controller that actuates a recorder to record an audio program upon detecting a programmable recording signal. In operation, the user enables the recording by selecting a programmable recording signal associated with the audio program he wishes to record.
One advantage of the invention is that a user may pause the acoustical transmission of a live radio broadcast in a VESS at an arbitrary point for an arbitrary period of time and then subsequently resume the broadcast from the same point. Another advantage of the invention is that a user may have access to a wide selection of audio programs suited to his personal taste and needs.